I'm not a doctor, I'm not gonna hurt you
by AngelaLynd
Summary: AU. After their fight, Conrad leaves Nic his keys to her appartment. A week later, Nic doesn't feel well and Conrad wants to examine her. Hurt/Comfort ensues.


Throughout the day, Nic continuously tried to stay out of Conrad's reach. After a week of only seeing each other in between shifts, this afternoon Nic had the misfortune of her shift coinciding with him being on call. They had met shortly in the morning briefing, paused for a good morning, and everybody had gone their way.

He could hear her, walking beside him into the room, answering the floor's central line, giving instructions to the nurses, while he was on rounds, or while he hung over the nurses' station to order tests. He had noticed a cough interrupt her mid-sentence, a dry cough, over and over again. But when he attempted to approach her, she kept walking away. He couldn't tell if it was random or on purpose.

Conrad had a rule, _always take care of your own_. And he intended to apply it.

"Nic, how are you?" he asks her, when he stumbles upon her in the kitchen.

"Okay, thank you." She answers dryly.

"I can take a look at you" he suggests.

Nic frowns upon the sudden reveal of his acknowledgment. "You don't have to take care of me" she answers, before standing up and leaving the room.

Conrad is left behind, all alone.

A few hours later the nurses are changing shifts. Conrad is walking down the corridor when he hears someone vomiting inside the kitchen. He walks in and approaches the toilet without giving it a second thought. The door is half open* he immediately recognizes her from her blond hair.

Her body is shaking, hanging over the sink.

Conrad can feel his heart ache. He approaches her from behind and his hands touch her shoulders. He is looking at her through the mirror. She is looking at the void but inside she is feeling deeply relieved that Conrad is there. They might have fought, his harsh words echoing in her head on repeat, but when it all comes down it, they are still the same. His aura always calms her down. She simply closes her eyes and lets out a deep breath.

"Here" he says, offering her some tissue. She accepts it and begins wiping herself. Then, he turns on the tap and lets the water clean the sink.

They communicate profoundly and with no words spoken.

"You're okay. Go to the couch, lie down." He tells her.

The nurse tentatively approaches the sofa. She has already removed her robe, wearing only her clothes. After thinking about it for a while, she lies down and rests her head on the cushion with a sigh.

Conrad follows her. He is wearing his grey scrubs on top of a white shirt and dark jeans. He looks at her, his jawline hard as opposed to his reassuring gaze.

Approval is given silently, with the meet of the eyes. Conrad sits on a stool next to her and Nic lifts her shirt by herself to let him examine her. Conrad takes hold of his stethoscope placing the buds in his ears and the other end, cold over her abdomen. He listens carefully, and occasionally moves his gaze up to meet hers.

Conrad moves the bell a few times before he asks. "Does your abdomen hurt?"

"Yes." She replies.

"Where?"

"Everywhere" she says, her eyes tear, and her eyebrows contort. Her body begins to tremble.

"Okay, it's okay" he whispers, touching her shoulder to reassure her. Then, he places his palm on her forehead.

"You have a fever. When did the symptoms start?"

"Last night."

"Sit up, please" he tells her and offers his hand to help her. She sits up and leans forward, so that Conrad is able to listen to her lungs.

"Deep breaths"

The moment is quiet, there is blind trust from her part, same from his part. His touch is painfully familiar.

Then, he checks her lymph nodes.

"You caught a cold" he tells her. "Probably from the kids" Then he checks her eyelids. "You're dehydrated. You need lots of water and rest." He says. His voice is low and it comes out like a growl.

Nic lies back and turns on her side, looking at the void, speechless.

"I'll watch Jess." He adds.

It was now that Nic understood, why Conrad was so dear to his patients. It was his demeanor, mentally and physically, that made them feel at ease and made them trust him as their doctor. And in their place now – she could not have otherwise understood it- she only hoped he would stay with her for a little while longer.

He lowers his head and smiles. "You'll be okay. But if you don't listen to me, I will put an IV in you" he says, jokingly.

She opens her eyes in shock. She knows Conrad hasn't taken blood since medical school.

He caresses her chin, exploiting the moment to add. "I don't want to hurt you, and if I do, it is only because I am trying to help you" he says, remembering what Nic had told him one night. _I'm not a doctor, I'm not gonna hurt you._

She immediately understands, and smiles. "I know" she says.

"Get some rest "


End file.
